It'll be a dry future in more ways than one in the landscape contracting business for the rest of this year and in 2011, according to ValleyCrest Landscape Development.

The Calabasas-based company, which says it is the largest landscape contractor nationally with 10,000 employees and $nearly $940 million in annual sales, has nearly $16.7 million in active contracts in San Diego County and $32 million San Diego revenues this year, 10 percent of the total for California. The company established its local office in 1969 and currently has 350 employees.

But most of the projects here are government or institutional jobs and only a handful are in the once booming residential and commercial market.

"It's very competitive," said Vince Germann, San Diego regional manager and senior vice president. "A lot of contractors that were doing developer work turned their sights on the public sector, as well. We've had to compete with that as well as deliver a quality product."

Current projects include $10 million for the state Route 125 South Bay tollroad; $2 million for the new federal courthouse in downtown San Diego; $1.2 million for Rady's Children's Hospital; and $1 million for Palomar Medical Center West.

Comparing 2010 to 2009, Germann said ValleyCrest is finishing up leftover projects from the "good years."

"2010 has been tough," he said. "We were fortunate to have a healthy backlog going into it and putting back (replacing) the work we're finishing is proving to be a challenge.

"You're going to be seeing pretty much a flat amount of work opportunities in the next couple of years. I don't think it's going to be any worse, but I don't anticipate it getting much better, especially in the private sector."

Apart from the business outlook, Germann said the nature of landscaping has changed for good.

"There's little or no turf grass being designed in," he said. "In fact, if there is, a lot of times it's artificial turf; we've been certified for that for a number of years."

"We're seeing the change in the whole industry," he said. "It doesn't just pertain to the public sector. I've seen, with very few model (home) complexes out there, they're all going with drought-tolerant plant palettes. I think the tropic, lush look trend has definitely turned to more of a California native, indigenous look and plant palette. It makes more sense. It's more sustainable and I think in the long run that's what people are going to stick with."